Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Beleaguered Medical Examiner Michael McGee: Under scrutiny yet again: The Star Tribune (Reporters Greta Paul and Andy Mannix) reports that a wrongful conviction casts doubt on former Ramsey County medical examiner's methods - and It's not the first time - adding that, "A new lawsuit adds to questions of whether Dr. Michael McGee used sound science to investigate deaths in Minnesota over a career spanning four decades."…"Now the integrity of the science McGee has used over his career is being challenged. In a lawsuit filed earlier this year, McGee is accused of fabricating medical conclusions and providing false testimony in the 1996 drowning death of Jane Rhodes, resulting in 25 years of wrongful imprisonment for her husband. After Thomas Rhodes' release a year ago, an investigation by the Minnesota Attorney General's Office found evidence McGee used "medically unsupported testimony" to arrive at his opinion. "McGee reasoned backward — from the nonmedical evidence to the medical findings," the report said."

PASSAGE ONE OF THE DAY: "Rhodes is at least the fourth person to either be released from prison or resentenced to a lower penalty after revelations that McGee provided flawed or inaccurate testimony leading to their convictions, according to court records. In the wake of these reversals, a series of judges' orders and reports has described his work as reckless and lacking in scientific discipline. U.S. District Court of Appeals Judge Ralph R. Erickson called McGee's testimony in the case of Dru Sjodin, a college student who was kidnapped and murdered in 2003, "so unmoored from a scientific basis that it should not have been received at all." "The evidence in the record demonstrates that McGee did much more than merely follow where the evidence and science led him," Erickson wrote in his opinion. "Instead, he chose to play the role of a super sleuth, something akin to Sherlock Holmes."

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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "For decades, Ramsey County prosecutors trusted McGee's expertise, even when others questioned it. After the judge's criticism in the Sjodin case, County Attorney John Choi and a group of independent experts launched a review of cases in which McGee's testimony played an integral role in a conviction. The investigation is ongoing. Choi says they've culled 71 cases for the review, dating to the 1980s, when McGee still was a rising star in the field of death investigation science."

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STORY: "A wrongful conviction casts doubt on former Ramsey County medical examiner's methods. It's not the first time,"  by reporters  Greta  Kaul and Andy Mannix, published by The Star Tribune, on March 16, 2024. 

SUB-HEADING: "A new lawsuit adds to questions of whether Dr. Michael McGee used sound science to investigate deaths in Minnesota over a career spanning four decades."

GIST:  "At the beginning of his four-decade career as a Ramsey County medical examiner, Michael McGee solved cases that had for years stumped his predecessors.

He told Star Tribune reporters in 1986 it took him only a cursory review of records to determine one victim, a 3-year-old boy, had been beaten to death, reinvigorating a case that had been cold for 20 years.

 The difference was in the science.

 Before 1979, Ramsey County had relied on part-time coroners to rule on causes of death. McGee was a doctor — trained in the science of forensic pathology — which allowed him to see what the others could not.

"It isn't some medical mystery," he said almost 40 years ago.

Now the integrity of the science McGee has used over his career is being challenged.

In a lawsuit filed earlier this year, McGee is accused of fabricating medical conclusions and providing false testimony in the 1996 drowning death of Jane Rhodes, resulting in 25 years of wrongful imprisonment for her husband. 

After Thomas Rhodes' release a year ago, an investigation by the Minnesota Attorney General's Office found evidence McGee used "medically unsupported testimony" to arrive at his opinion.

"McGee reasoned backward — from the nonmedical evidence to the medical findings," the report said.

Rhodes is at least the fourth person to either be released from prison or resentenced to a lower penalty after revelations that McGee provided flawed or inaccurate testimony leading to their convictions, according to court records. In the wake of these reversals, a series of judges' orders and reports has described his work as reckless and lacking in scientific discipline.

U.S. District Court of Appeals Judge Ralph R. Erickson called McGee's testimony in the case of Dru Sjodin, a college student who was kidnapped and murdered in 2003, "so unmoored from a scientific basis that it should not have been received at all."

"The evidence in the record demonstrates that McGee did much more than merely follow where the evidence and science led him," Erickson wrote in his opinion. "Instead, he chose to play the role of a super sleuth, something akin to Sherlock Holmes."

Attorneys for McGee did not respond to requests for an interview.

The growing body of criticism has raised questions with his longtime employer, Ramsey County.

For decades, Ramsey County prosecutors trusted McGee's expertise, even when others questioned it. After the judge's criticism in the Sjodin case, County Attorney John Choi and a group of independent experts launched a review of cases in which McGee's testimony played an integral role in a conviction. The investigation is ongoing.

Choi says they've culled 71 cases for the review, dating to the 1980s, when McGee still was a rising star in the field of death investigation science.

'False or incorrect'

This is not the first time questions about McGee's methods have prompted Choi's office to review his work.

In 2011, Choi's office launched a more limited investigation after the release of Michael Hansen, who spent six years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of murdering his infant daughter, Avryonna.

McGee attributed the baby's death to "homicide due to closed head trauma," according to a review of testimony in Hansen's case by a retired assistant Ramsey County attorney. McGee suggested a fracture on Avryonna's skull was caused by a forceful strike against a hard surface. But outside experts called by nonprofit law firm, the Great North Innocence Project, determined later the fracture likely was a result of a fall from a shopping cart days earlier while Avryonna was in her mom's care. And the injury didn't kill her. The experts determined Avryonna instead died from accidental suffocation, caused by her sleeping position.

Lindsey Thomas, a longtime Minnesota medical examiner who participated in the review, said McGee went beyond the facts of the case to "invent" a story that Hansen woke up in the middle of the night and slammed the baby's head against the wall.

"It's not our job to make up a story," Thomas said in an interview. "It's our job to say, 'Tell me what happened, and I will tell you if the evidence supports that story or doesn't.'"

A judge vacated Hansen's conviction. He said there was evidence McGee may have given false or incorrect testimony at trial. The Douglas County attorney dropped the charges.

A Ramsey County Attorney's office review of Hansen's case by a retired assistant county attorney called the judge's accusation that McGee gave false testimony unfair. An investigation by Choi's office, in light of Hansen's wrongful conviction, looked at infant death cases going back to 2001 and found no similar cases. A previous review by the office that looked at McGee's interpretation of a test used in sexual assault cases found no evidence of issues.

McGee was hired on as Ramsey County's chief medical examiner in 1985. In that role, he was not an employee of the county, but rather his company was under contract to provide medical examiner services.

His star began to tarnish with a series of overturned convictions, starting in the early 2000s.

The first was Evan Zimmerman, a man convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison in the 2000 death of his former girlfriend, Kathleen Thompson, found strangled on a curb one February morning in Eau Claire, Wis. McGee testified that a phone cord found in Zimmerman's van possibly was used to strangle her.

Zimmerman's conviction was reversed after the Wisconsin Innocence Project helped him successfully argue his trial counsel had been ineffective, in part because his lawyer failed to present independent medical testimony: evidence showed fibers found in Thompson's wound that could not have come from the phone cord.

'Medically unsupported testimony'

A decade after the reversal of Hansen's conviction, Judge Erickson took issue with McGee's autopsy of Sjodin and vacated the death penalty for Alfonso Rodriguez, the man convicted of kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing her.

Erickson wrote that it was beyond question Rodriguez had kidnapped and murdered Sjodin. But the jury "did not hear truth," the judge said, when it came to McGee's insistence that she had been sexually assaulted.

Prosecutors had invoked the sexual assault in asking the jury to sentence Rodriguez to death.

After the judge overturned the death sentence, Choi's office launched its current investigation into McGee's work, broader in scope than a previous one, along with the Prosecutors' Center for Excellence, an independent nonprofit.

Soon after, a new Conviction Review Unit in Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison's office found Thomas Rhodes had been wrongfully imprisoned in his wife's death.

Jane Rhodes died in a 1996 boating incident while the couple and their two boys vacationed in Spicer, Minn. McGee performed the autopsy because the local coroner was not formally trained in death investigations.

McGee first ruled the manner of death was "pending investigation." He changed the manner to "homicide" not long after meeting with the county prosecutor in what Rhodes' attorneys allege was an improper "attempt to influence the determination as to the cause and manner of death." McGee presented an argument that Jane Rhodes' death was premeditated and intentional: He found what he called defensive wounds on her arms and neck injuries that he said came from a blow that caused her to fall from the boat. He said injuries on her face were caused by repeatedly running her over with the boat "until he knew she was dead," according to the Attorney General report.

At trial, Ellison's office found, the prosecution relied heavily on McGee, who, "by the time of trial, was able to present compelling evidence of premeditated and intentional acts that led to Jane's death by drowning."

The Conviction Review Unit unearthed notes from McGee's meeting with the prosecutor. The meeting never came up at Rhodes' trial. After reviewing the evidence and consulting with other experts, the conviction unit "could find no evidence to support Dr. McGee's opinions."

None of the cases resulting in wrongful convictions was based in Ramsey County, where Choi's office is now conducting the case review.

This past week, Choi said the pending investigation limited his ability to comment. He emphasized the importance for the process to play out and ensure confidence in the work of the County Attorney's Office. He said the review is nearing the end of its second phase, and he's awaiting recommendations from investigators.

"I come into this role recognizing that my job is not to protect a past decision or a verdict or an outcome or any particular person that was involved in a past case. My role is to ensure that justice is done, and that means doing whatever is required based upon those recommendations," he said.

Ellison's office also is reviewing every case the office has prosecuted in which McGee testified on behalf of the state, spokesman Brian Evans said in a statement.

"If Dr. McGee's role in any of those cases raises concerns, the Attorney General's Office will investigate that case to ensure a wrongful conviction was not secured. The office has identified roughly a dozen cases for review. According to Choi's office, the Innocence Project is also helping review cases outside of Ramsey County.

In a statement, Ramsey County Board Chair Trista Martinson said the board and leadership team are in full support of the investigation by Choi's office and partners. "We are awaiting a complete picture to determine any potential next steps and cannot comment on any specific cases at this time," she wrote.

No process for handling mistakes

McGee is not the first medical examiner to be wrong.

Pathology is not a crystal ball — despite how it's often depicted in crime procedural TV shows — and the accepted science guiding a medical opinion is always advancing.

But McGee's history with wrongful convictions raises red flags beyond the normal scope of doing business, Thomas said.

"We certainly hope that we aren't that wrong," she said.

Katherine Judson, the executive director of the Center for Integrity in Forensic Sciences, said reviews of McGee's work are called for. "Once you discover that this person has had a number of errors, and they have operated without appropriate oversight for a long time or a period of time, then we need to audit their cases," she said.

Unlike in some medical fields, the medical examiner profession is a human endeavor that doesn't deal well with human error: The only feedback medical examiners often get on their work is adversarial, coming from the party arguing the other side of the case, Judson said. There also can be issues of bias that come from working closely with law enforcement and prosecution within a bigger government apparatus.

"That's one place where people, either consciously or subconsciously, might be tailoring their processes, their conclusions, to maybe please — but at least not [annoy] — the people who are in charge of their job," Judson said.

The entire story can be read at:

https://www.startribune.com/a-wrongful-conviction-casts-doubt-on-former-ramsey-county-medical-examiners-methods-its-not-the-first-time/600351677/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:  I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"  section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;


SEE BREAKDOWN OF  SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG,  AT THE LINK BELOW:  HL:


https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985


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FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."

Lawyer Radha Natarajan:

Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;


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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions.   They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!

Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;

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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:


David Hammond, one of Broadwater's attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it's the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.


https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-12348801

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MORE VALUABLE WORDS: "As a former public defender, Texas' refusal to delay Ivan Cantu's execution to evaluate new evidence is deeply worrying for the state of our legal system. There should be no room for doubt in a death penalty case. The facts surrounding Cantu's execution should haunt all of us."

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett; X March 1, 2024.
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Monday, March 18, 2024

Nota Bene: Karen Read; Massachusetts: Publisher's note. I have begun to follow this case as it may turn out to be of interest to the reader's of this Blog. She is charged in connection with the death of a Boston police officer. CNN (Reporters Faith Karimi and Zenebou Sylla) reports that a state trooper investigating the death of a Boston police officer is now under investigation himself, adding another layer of complexity to a case that has sharply divided a Massachusetts suburb. Hmmmmmm! Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog. "Investigators allege O’Keefe’s girlfriend, Karen Read, hit him with her SUV in the Boston suburb of Canton in January 2022 and left him outside in the snow to die. But Read’s defense team alleges that he was fatally beaten in the Canton home of a fellow Boston police officer, and that Read is the victim of a coverup to protect those inside the home that night. Read has said she dropped O’Keefe outside the home shortly after midnight — after they left a bar — then drove off to his house to sleep because she was not feeling well. O’Keefe’s body was found about six hours later outside the home. Read has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a collision."

PASSAGE OF THE DAY:  "The Massachusetts State Police did not specify whether Proctor’s alleged violation is related to Read’s case. “Trooper Proctor remains on full duty,” a State Police spokesperson said in a statement to CNN on Thursday. “Please note that we are not stating whether the potential violation relates to a specific case, nor are we specifying the nature of the alleged violation.”

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STORY: "A state trooper is investigating the death of a Boston police officer. Now, he’s accused of policy violations," by Senior Writer (CNN Digital) Faith Karimi and  News Assistant Zenebou Sylla, published by CNN on March 16, 2024.

PHOTO CAPTION:"Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe was found unresponsive in January 2022 outside this residence in Canton, Massachusetts. 


GIST: "A state trooper investigating the death of a Boston police officer is now under investigation himself, authorities said Thursday, adding another layer of complexity to a case that has sharply divided a Massachusetts suburb.

The Massachusetts State Police said it has opened an internal investigation into a “potential violation of department policy” against Trooper Michael Proctor, one of the lead investigators in the death of Officer John O’Keefe. It did not elaborate on what he is being investigated for.

Investigators allege O’Keefe’s girlfriend, Karen Read, hit him with her SUV in the Boston suburb of Canton in January 2022 and left him outside in the snow to die.

But Read’s defense team alleges that he was fatally beaten in the Canton home of a fellow Boston police officer, and that Read is the victim of a coverup to protect those inside the home that night. Read has said she dropped O’Keefe outside the home shortly after midnight  — after they left a bar — then drove off to his house to sleep because she was not feeling well.

O’Keefe’s body was found about six hours later outside the home. Read has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a collision.

The Massachusetts State Police did not specify whether Proctor’s alleged violation is related to Read’s case. “Trooper Proctor remains on full duty,” a State Police spokesperson said in a statement to CNN on Thursday.

“Please note that we are not stating whether the potential violation relates to a specific case, nor are we specifying the nature of the alleged violation.”

David Traub, a spokesperson for the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting Read’s case, told CNN they’re aware of the investigation. Proctor remains “on full duty and his responsibilities within our office have not changed,” he said.

The investigation comes the same week Read’s defense team alleged that Proctor did not fully disclose his relationship with key witnesses in the case. During a hearing Tuesday, attorney Alan Jackson alleged that text messages revealed Proctor has close ties with the family of the homeowner, and has communicated with them before and after O’Keefe’s death.

“We’ve been saying since September 2022 motions that we filed before this court and filed with the Commonwealth that there is a conflict. You’re not investigating the conflict. That conflict was never described to the grand jurors. And we’ve been rebuffed at every single turn,” Jackson said in court on Tuesday.

Proctor’s attorney, Michael DiStefano, said his client is cooperating with the investigation.

“Trooper Proctor remains steadfast in the integrity of the work he performed investigating the death of Mr. John O’Keefe,” he said in a statement obtained by CNN. “To the extent that Trooper Proctor’s personal text messages are alluded to in court proceedings regarding Ms. Read, he respectfully submits that the objective investigative steps he and members of his unit took are in no way undermined by the content of the personal messages.”

Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally has said the defense is using the relationships to distract from Read’s alleged guilt, CNN affiliate WFXT reported.

“It’s a three-card Monte trick. You know, card trick. On the corner, on the side. Look at all of this. Look at this relationship. Look at that relationship,” Lally said.

Read’s trial is scheduled to start next month."

The entire story can be read at:


https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/16/us/state-trooper-investigating-killing-canton-boston-police-officer-policy-violations-cec/index.html


PUBLISHER'S NOTE:  I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"  section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;


SEE BREAKDOWN OF  SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG,  AT THE LINK BELOW:  HL:


https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985


---------------------------------------------------------------


FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."

Lawyer Radha Natarajan:

Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;


—————————————————————————————————

FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions.   They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!

Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;

---------------------------------------------------------

YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:


David Hammond, one of Broadwater's attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it's the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.


https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-12348801

————————————————————————————————


MORE VALUABLE WORDS: "As a former public defender, Texas' refusal to delay Ivan Cantu's execution to evaluate new evidence is deeply worrying for the state of our legal system. There should be no room for doubt in a death penalty case. The facts surrounding Cantu's execution should haunt all of us."

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett; X March 1, 2024.
---------------------------------------------

Jessie Dotson: Tennessee: (From our 'read this and weep,' department: False confession, witness intimidation and so much more. The Death Penalty Information Center reports that he has filed a petition asking a judge to vacate his conviction and death sentence…"The petition details that “Over the course of the evening, Lt. Armstrong threat­ened to arrest Jessie’s moth­er, Priscilla Shaw, and sis­ter, Nicole Dotson. He threat­ened to kill Jessie. He threat­ened to put Jessie in gen­er­al pop­u­la­tion with the Gangster Disciples in the jail at 201 Poplar and let them kill him. He lied to Jessie and told him that they had Jessie’s foot­prints in blood at the [crime] scene. He made promis­es to Jessie, but told him he had to hur­ry or else Lt. Armstrong couldn’t help him. And then, he repeat­ed­ly played the tape of C.J. [Dotson], say­ing that Jessie did it. Jessie broke. He confessed.”


PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in false confessions because of the disturbing number of exonerations in the USA, Canada and multiple other jurisdictions throughout the world, where, in the absence of incriminating forensic evidence the conviction is based on self-incrimination – and because of the growing body of  scientific research showing how vulnerable suspects are to widely used interrogation methods  such as  the notorious ‘Reid Technique.’ As  all too many of this Blog's post have shown, I also recognize that pressure for false confessions can take many forms, up to and including physical violence, even physical and mental torture.

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog:

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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in  false eye-witness identification issues because  wrongful identifications are at the heart of so many DNA-related exonerations in the USA and elsewhere - and because so much scientific research is being conducted with a goal to making the identification process more   transparent and reliable- and less subject to deliberate manipulation.  I have also reported far too many cases over the years - mainly cases lacking DNA evidence (or other forensic evidence pointing to the suspect - where the police have somehow  rigged the identification process in order to make an identification inevitable. 
Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.

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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Three additional children survived the attacks despite sustaining injuries. One of the three survivors, Mr. Dotson’s 9-year-old nephew, C. J. Dotson, identified him as the attacker, providing critical eyewitness testimony that defense counsel now say was unreliable."

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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: " Prosecutors relied heavily on the testimony of C.J. Dotson, who was stabbed in the head during the killings but survived his wounds. He would eventually name Mr. Dotson as the person responsible for the killings, but Mr. Dotson’s new filings argue that C.J.’s memory had been “tampered” with by police officers and that he was not in the right state of mind to identify anyone. The petition also points to C.J.’s medical records indicating he was on “mind-altering medications” when he was interviewed, including morphine, propofol, and hydrocodone and fentanyl.  During C.J.’s first interview with a trained forensic child advocate, he named two separate people as suspects and repeated what he heard the suspects say.  That interview was not completed because the advocate believed that C.J. was too distressed to continue.  In violation of established protocol, police Sergeant Caroline Mason then questioned C.J., and the petition alleges the Sgt. Mason told C.J. about gifts he would receive if he named a suspect.  Linda Steele, an FBI expert, interviewed C.J. four days after he spoke with Sgt. Mason, yet her report was never disclosed to the defense.  Prosecutors also failed to disclose to Mr. Dotson’s trial attorneys that C.J.’s psychologist said the child’s memory was unreliable."

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ENTRY: "Tennessee Death Row Prisoner’s New Appeal Alleges Innocence, Prosecutorial Misconduct, and Ineffective Counsel," published by The Death Penalty Information Center, on  March 13, 2024.


GIST: "Jessie Dotson, a man sentenced to death for killing six people in 2008 in the Binghampton neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee, has filed a petition for a writ of a habeas corpus asking a judge to vacate his conviction and death sentence. 


His petition alleges that he is innocent, that police coerced him to falsely confess, and that a number of prosecutorial and defense errors occurred at trial. 


Mr. Dotson has been on death row since 2008, when he was sentenced to death for the murders of four adults, including his brother, and two children.


 Three additional children survived the attacks despite sustaining injuries. One of the three survivors, Mr. Dotson’s 9-year-old nephew, C. J. Dotson, identified him as the attacker, providing critical eyewitness testimony that defense counsel now say was unreliable.


Mr. Dotson’s appeal identifies several trial errors in addition to the ineffective assistance of his counsel. 


Defense counsel now argue that the killings occurred as part of a gang retaliation, noting that some of the victims were armed and that Mr. Dotson’s brother had crossed gang members from the Gangster Disciples.


 The petition alleges that the crime scene was characteristic of a “total blackout order,” which is an order to kill a target’s entire family. 


With this evidence pointing away from Mr. Dotson, the petition also alleges that police intentionally ignored and did not share information with the defense that supported this theory.


Of the 468 exhibits introduced at trial, none were linked to Mr. Dotson through DNA testing. 


 Prosecutors relied heavily on the testimony of C.J. Dotson, who was stabbed in the head during the killings but survived his wounds. 


He would eventually name Mr. Dotson as the person responsible for the killings, but Mr. Dotson’s new filings argue that C.J.’s memory had been “tampered” with by police officers and that he was not in the right state of mind to identify anyone.


The petition also points to C.J.’s medical records indicating he was on “mind-altering medications” when he was interviewed, including morphine, propofol, and hydrocodone and fentanyl. 


During C.J.’s first interview with a trained forensic child advocate, he named two separate people as suspects and repeated what he heard the suspects say. 


That interview was not completed because the advocate believed that C.J. was too distressed to continue. 


In violation of established protocol, police Sergeant Caroline Mason then questioned C.J., and the petition alleges the Sgt. Mason told C.J. about gifts he would receive if he named a suspect. 


Linda Steele, an FBI expert, interviewed C.J. four days after he spoke with Sgt. Mason, yet her report was never disclosed to the defense. 


Prosecutors also failed to disclose to Mr. Dotson’s trial attorneys that C.J.’s psychologist said the child’s memory was unreliable.


Mr. Dotson’s petition also describes the seven-hour-interrogation he endured while being “sleep deprived and psychologically manipulated,” all the while maintaining his innocence.


 At several points, Mr. Dotson invoked his right to remain silent and asked for an attorney, which the police repeatedly ignored as they continued the interrogation. 


The petition details that “Over the course of the evening, Lt. Armstrong threat­ened to arrest Jessie’s moth­er, Priscilla Shaw, and sis­ter, Nicole Dotson. He threat­ened to kill Jessie. He threat­ened to put Jessie in gen­er­al pop­u­la­tion with the Gangster Disciples in the jail at 201 Poplar and let them kill him. He lied to Jessie and told him that they had Jessie’s foot­prints in blood at the [crime] scene. He made promis­es to Jessie, but told him he had to hur­ry or else Lt. Armstrong couldn’t help him. And then, he repeat­ed­ly played the tape of C.J. [Dotson], say­ing that Jessie did it. Jessie broke. He confessed.”


Despite this confession, much of Mr. Dotson’s statements do not align with the crime scene evidence. The information elicited in Mr. Dotson’s confession came from information provided to him by police.


 Defense counsel further allege that Mr. Dotson was not made aware of his Miranda rights before he signed his “confession.”


The entire story can be read at:

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/news/tennessee-death-row-prisoners-new-appeal-alleges-innocence-prosecutorial-misconduct-and-ineffective-counsel

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:  I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"  section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;


SEE BREAKDOWN OF  SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG,  AT THE LINK BELOW:  HL:


https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985


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FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."

Lawyer Radha Natarajan:

Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;


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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions.   They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!

Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;

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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:


David Hammond, one of Broadwater's attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, "Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it's the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.


https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-12348801

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MORE VALUABLE WORDS: "As a former public defender, Texas' refusal to delay Ivan Cantu's execution to evaluate new evidence is deeply worrying for the state of our legal system. There should be no room for doubt in a death penalty case. The facts surrounding Cantu's execution should haunt all of us."

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett; X March 1, 2024.
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